Cheryl Cole engulfed in row over 'racism'
after Gamu Nhengu is kicked out of X Factor

Over
128,000 people have joined the 'Gamu should have got through' group on
Facebook

Show insiders
were concerned over Gamu's immigration status

Cheryl
Cole was at the centre of a race row last night after failing to put a
black contestant through to the X Factor final despite admitting that
she had an outstanding voice.

On Sunday, Mrs Cole decided that
Gamu Nhengu, who had been one of the favourites to win the ITV talent
show, would not go through to the last 12.

After selecting
two contestants who had trouble with their auditions - Cher Lloyd and
Katie Waissel - Cheryl told the 18-year-old Zimbabwean: ‘You are
extremely adorable. You’ve got a great voice.

‘It’s just a
question for me now as to whether you brought the star quality that I
was looking for yesterday.’

Upset: Gamu Nhengu's mother Nokuthula,
pictured yesterday outside the family's home in Scotland, said her
daughter 'doesn't know' if she can speak to anyone following her
rejection for the X Factor finals

Holed up: This is the very modest apartment
block where Gamu has been hiding since the weekend

After hearing her decision, critics bombarded social networking
websites with complaints.

One message repeated on the site read: ‘Cheryl is so
daft. I mean, just because Africa gave you malaria doesn’t mean you
should take it out on poor Gamu.’

Mrs Cole, 27, was seriously ill
with malaria this summer after a trip to Tanzania in the wake of the
collapse of her marriage to footballer Ashley Cole over his infidelity.

A
fan on Digital Spy’s forum wrote: ‘If these decisions were made on U.S.
X Factor, there’d be a race riot. I swear to God, African-Americans
would go mental.’

Shock: Gamu is consoled by Cheryl Cole after
finding out she has not been chosen for the final 12

'Extremely adorable': Gamu learns of her fate
from Cheryl at the Judge's House round

On the Facebook group
‘I hate Cheryl Cole! She is racist!’, set up
yesterday, Morgan Michaela Davis wrote: ‘I don’t want to see racist
people as judges on X Factor so I’ve complained to [regulator] Ofcom to
have her sacked! Everyone should do the same.’

In
2003,
she was charged with racially aggravated assault after
being involved in an altercation with a nightclub toilet attendant.

The
singer was found guilty of assault occasioning actual bodily harm, but
cleared of racially aggravated assault and was sentenced to 120 hours
of community service and ordered to pay her victim £500 in compensation.

Friends
said her black friend, the rapper Will.i.am was with her
when she decided against Gamu – and she had in fact acted on the advice
of the production team.

Show sources claimed there were
concerns over Gamu’s immigration status because her mother was in the
process of renewing her visa to obtain leave to remain in Britain.

Support: Over 128,000 people have joined the
'Gamu should have got through' group on Facebook

A
friend said: ‘Cheryl is the least racist person imaginable. How can you
say she is racist when she was married to a black man and had a black
man sitting next to her at judge’s house?

‘She takes her advice
from the production team and is extremely upset by these slurs. She is
mortified. Cheryl is really, really upset, to say the least. It’s
unfair to blame her solely for the fact that Gamu was not able to go
through to the live shows.

‘Cheryl is a professional to her core
and she loves the show. She was told by the producers that Gamu had some
visa issues and they were worried about problems occurring later on
during the show.’

Miss Nhengu moved to Scotland eight years ago
with her two younger brothers, after their mother, 38, began studying at
Stirling University.

She has qualified as a nurse and was
allowed to stay in the UK under the Fresh Talent scheme and had leave to
remain – the right to stay – until August 29 this year.

Miss
Nhengu and her siblings were allowed to stay in the UK as their mother’s
dependants.

Helping hand: Cheryl and her friend Will.i.am,
who helped her whittle down her contestants to three acts

The family re-applied to stay in the UK in August but their
application will take a couple of months to process. Home Office sources
said there were no difficulties over her working.

The UK Border
Agency said: ‘The family have resubmitted applications for leave to
remain in the UK. Supporting documents, including passports, are
required as part of the application process.

‘Once the
applicants make appointments to submit their biometric details, the
applications will be considered in line with our published guidance.’

An
X Factor source said: ‘It was lucky that Cheryl did her judge’s
house in the UK as we would have had problems taking Gamu abroad as she
does not have a valid passport.’

But the production insider
stressed: ‘There were worries about Gamu’s immigration status during
the auditions. But truly, Gamu did not make Cheryl’s final three as
there were others thought to be more talented. That’s what it came down
to.’

Meanwhile, Cher Lloyd, 17, made it through to the final 12,
despite concerns over her vulnerability.

Fears
were raised for Miss Lloyd after she buckled under the pressure during
her final audition for Mrs Cole and failed to sing after battling a
sore throat.

Cheryl's girls: (L-R) Cher Lloyd, Katie Waissel
and Rebecca Ferguson

But yesterday her father hit out at
claims that she was too frail to take part, saying ‘her mental state is
fine’.

The show’s producers are keeping a close eye on her
and have made a counsellor available to all contestants. Mrs Cole
decided to send Cher through based on her previous performances.

But
her father Darren Lloyd dismissed the concerns. He told the Daily Mail:
‘People have said she cracked under the pressure with her audition on
Saturday night but that was rubbish.

‘She had tonsillitis and
found it very difficult to sing. We are totally behind her and support
her. She deserves to be in the live finals.

‘Cher is absolutely
delighted and excited to be in the live finals. Her mental state is
fine, she’s focused and excited,’ added Mr Lloyd, from Malvern,
Worcestershire.

Still hope for the wild cards

A handful of
axed contestants will be given a second chance to return to the show, it
has emerged.

The four judges have each been given a ‘wild card’
entry that will allow them to bring their favourite reject back for the
live finals, which will begin on Saturday.

Simon Cowell, Cheryl
Cole, Dannii Minogue and Louis Walsh had each selected three hopefuls to
go through last weekend.

The wild card means that they will all
be able to pick one extra contestant from their groups. Their decisions
will be announced on Saturday’s show.

Producers made the decision
after being impressed by the standard of contestants on this year’s
show.

However, an X Factor source said Simon has been keen to
spice up the format with ‘wild card’ finalists for several years and
that he has decided to implement the stunt after being convinced it will
become a ratings winner.

hate it when everything is turned back to race all the time especially with the Daily Hate - Gamu was good but there were others just as good as her IMO who also did not get through who are not moaning etc Personally hope TrayC goes through

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